The Pennsylvania state treasurer said on Tuesday his agency had made plans to prevent highway construction and safety closures amid delayed tax collection due to the economic fallout from the pandemic.

In a statement, Treasurer Joe Torsella said he was ready to authorize financial support for the Auto Licensing Fund to keep contractors paid and on the job throughout the fiscal year ending June 30.

The fund underwrites highway construction projects in Pennsylvania, as well as a significant portion of state police operations.

Torsella said he could loan funds from the Treasury to the Driver’s License Fund, as well as advance part of a loan that lawmakers may decide to allow against future tax revenues that will go to the fund, such as motorist fees and gasoline taxes.

Over the past decade, the Treasury has made regular short-term loans to the state government to help pay its bills until its biggest tax collection months arrive.

The measures, Torsella said, would give Gov. Tom Wolf and the Republican-controlled legislature time to resolve funding issues.

In November, PennDOT informed lawmakers it had to halt hundreds of construction projects from December, suggesting that they had to approve its proposal to borrow $ 600 million from road funds to keep construction crews to stay. paid and at work.